Alternative Perspectives On Narrative Family Therapy

Narrative Family Therapy
Narrative family therapy is a theoretical model that has grown out of the postmodern movement. Based on the idea that reality not simply concrete and observable, but subject to a person’s perception of the experience and the story he tells himself about who he is in the world. Rather than focusing on behaviors, narrative therapy focuses on how the clients interpret their experiences, then helps them to create a more positive story. This goes beyond reframing, a technique therapists will use to point out alternative perspectives. Narrative therapy helps a person “re-story” their lives, to create a different, more fitting, more positive story. When this happens, reframing is no longer necessary (Nichols, 2013).
Narrative
family therapy is young approach. Founded by Michael White of Australia, it grew out of his rejection of systems thinking and cybernetics. He saw problems as things that operate on people, rather than things people are doing. Also influential is David Epston, from New Zealand. He had an interest in anthropology, literature, and storytelling, and he was brought the narrative metaphor to White. It is from Epston that the idea of supportive communities came. He believed that for clients to maintain their new stories of themselves, they needed to have others who supported them. There are a wealth of other theorists whose ideas have contributed to the development of narrative therapy, including Jill Freedman, Gene Combs, Jeffrey Zimmerman, Vicki Dickerson and others. Their work has led to an approach that emphasizes that problems exist and are maintained through language, and that they can be restructured through dialogue; that we can help others by maintaining an open mind and a curious approach; and that therapist and client can work together collaboratively (Nichols, 2013). From the first interview, a narrative family therapist is listening to the client’s story.
What the client chooses to share is a window into how he or she sees the world. Even when a client seems contrary, it is an opportunity to better understand the plot of his life story (Waters, 2011). Often, the view a client has of the problem solidifies it, and alternative perspectives or solutions are impossible to see. This perception of the client being or having a problem is often reinforced by the simultaneous social narratives. In an effort to bring a broader view into the story, the narrative therapist will help the client externalize the problem, making it reside outside who the person is. Change comes about as the therapist then guides the client into deconstructing unproductive stories and reconstructing newer, healthier ones.
Vignette
Marcus is a twelve-year-old boy in sixth grade. He lives with his mother, and his two brothers. One brother is in eighth grade, the other is in third. They receive public assistance and mother does not work. Mother has brought Marcus for help because he is failing in school and defiant at home. When Mother and Marcus meet with the teacher, she communicates that Marcus is capable, but is distracted, disorganized, and doesn’t complete work. While Mother has tried, she is unable to get Marcus to sit down at home and complete school work.
Case
Conceptualization Assessment began at the initial session and continued to other sessions. At the initial session, Marcus shared that he enjoys learning things, but he has ADHD, so he can’t get his work done. He talked about the distractions in class and at home, and how he just can’t do work. Mom is clearly frustrated, stating that she’s given him his own workspace and has arranged for him to have uninterrupted worktime, and that he still doesn’t get his work done. She compares him to both older and younger brother, who work hard and get good grades.

Goals and Treatment The goals for the family in narrative therapy is to deconstruct the story, to break it down and look for the parts that can be viewed as positive and build on those parts to create a new story. It is not intended to prescribe treatment or manipulate outcomes (Waters, 2011). From the initial story, the therapist focused on getting Marcus to externalize his ADHD. In the beginning, both Marcus and his mom believe that the ADHD is part of who he is and that he is powerless over it. By externalizing the problem, the therapist helps create a common obstacle that she, Marcus, and Mom can combat together. Creating a common metaphor from the families own experience with the problem is a strategy often employed in narrative therapy (Waters, 2011). Through extensive questioning, Marcus and his mother came to see the ADHD as a goblin, and they agreed, along with brothers, to work together to defeat this goblin.
Next, the therapist will map the influence of the problem. Marcus and Mom both share their concerns. Marcus is embarrassed when he gets low scores or is called out for missing work, and Mom is worried that he will miss out on getting a strong education. Throughout the mapping, it becomes clear that both Mom and Marcus feel powerless and hopeless.
Questioning is the basis for all interventions in narrative family therapy, and through questioning, the therapist can ask relative influence questions. The purpose is to highlight times when the family has been able to avoid the effects of the problem. In this case, the therapist focused on Marcus’s statement that he liked learning new things. She asked Marcus to tell a story about a time he learned something new at school and felt successful. Marcus shared about a time his class had studied volcanoes. He completed all the assignments and even looked up information on his own, outside of class. When it came time to take the test, Marcus was the only one who got a perfect score. The therapist pointed out that Marcus must be smart to get the highest score, and that he worked hard so he must be a capable student.
Using these elements, being smart and a capable student, the therapist worked with Marcus and his mom to make a new story.
They focused on the particulars about he was able to conquer ADHD in this case, and over time, helped Marcus start to apply the same strategies for learning non-preferred material. Additionally, the therapist suggested that Marcus to join a homework club. In this way, he could surround himself with others who could support him and remind him that he is a smart and capable student. Lastly, the therapist, Mom, both brothers, and Marcus himself wrote letters to Marcus, affirming his new story and telling about times that he was able to overcome his
ADHD. While there is no structured format to narrative therapy, as the clients and therapist discover and create as they go, it may be necessary for the therapist to teach and reinforce a witnessing structure for the clients (Freedman, 2014). In the case of Marcus and his mom, she had a very difficult time listening to Marcus tell his story without interrupting. The therapist began by asking her to listen, and then giving her opportunities to respond to questions. She progressed to having mom listen as a friend and as a teacher, as well as a mom. She gave Marcus the chance to do so as well. By expanding the points of view of the story, it developed its richness and brought the complexity to light. In addition, it taught both Mom and son important skills as they developed a deeper connection and a more positive story.
Personal Fit Narrative family therapy is a good fit for me. As I’ve said in previous papers, I am discontent working only on the cognitive, solution-focused level of issues. I do not mean to say that cognition and solutions aren’t valuable. They are. But they seem to be Band-Aids in the face of deep, emotional trauma.
I, like Michael White, look for the best in people, and I have learned through my own experience that life stories can be redirected into more positive pathways.